FEWO meeting 25 · 2026-02-12 — Committee Evidence — LegisWatch

Summary

The committee met to study Bill C-225, an act to amend the Criminal Code regarding intimate partner violence. The witnesses were Debbie Henderson, Paul Henderson, and Florence Bellman, all appearing as individuals.

Debbie Henderson, aunt of Bailey McCourt, described Bailey's murder by her ex-husband hours after his release from custody, and the trauma of seeing her injuries. She argued that killings in intimate partner violence should be automatically classified as first-degree murder with parole eligibility only after 25 years, and that assaults should be labelled as intimate partner assaults to recognize their heightened risk. She called for stronger safeguards at release, requiring repeat offenders to appear before a judge for risk assessment, and stressed that families endure ongoing trauma from repeated court dates.

Paul Henderson, father of Darian Henderson-Bellman, blamed Bill C-75's catch-and-release system for his daughter's murder, as the alleged murderer was released on bail multiple times despite serious charges. He described the six-and-a-half-year wait for trial as a continuation of the family's suffering, and stated that the system's failure to detain the offender made it "just as guilty" as the murderer. He urged the committee to pass Bill C-225 to prevent similar tragedies, noting that police forces are deeply frustrated with the current bail system.

Florence Bellman, mother of Darian Henderson-Bellman, echoed her husband's criticism of the catch-and-release system and described living in fear with bars on windows and cameras. She highlighted that Peel Region had 12,400 intimate partner violence calls in one year, and that police need more resources, noting a recent budget for 300 new officers but that training takes time. She emphasized that coercive control is central to abuse and should be addressed in legislation, and that families have been "screaming for help for years" without sufficient action.

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Witnesses · 3

Debbie Henderson

As an Individual

Opening remarks

Thank you for giving our family the opportunity to be here to speak today about Bill C-225, Bailey's law. It's going to be a tough one today. Bailey was murdered in broad daylight in a parking lot with a hammer by her ex-husband. Just three hours earlier, he had been released from custody, pending sentencing after being found guilty of assault and uttering threats against her and her girls. Three hours was all the time that stood between a court finding him guilty and him carrying out violence that took Bailey's life. No one should have to go through life with the permanent image of what their loved one looked like after they were beaten to death, yet this is the reality our family faces every single day. Bailey was unrecognizable. Her face and her head were so swollen. Her eyes were completely swollen shut and were dark shades of black and blue. Her eyes were swollen to the point where you almost worried they were going to be forced out of her eye sockets, which was not an unreasonable assumption given that her brain had herniated out of her skull where the hammer had penetrated it. There was blood on her face, on her nose and bubbling out of her mouth. Part of her lip appeared…

Full testimony ↗

Paul Henderson

As an Individual

Opening remarks

I wanted to say something before I read my testimony, if I could. Our hearts go out to all affected by the violence in B.C. and also what just happened in Quebec. It puts the reason we all gather today at another level of urgency. Change has to come. It doesn't matter what party you're with; everybody should put their heads together to stop it. Thank you. I'm Paul Henderson, with my wife, Flo Bellman. Our daughter Darian Henderson-Bellman was murdered July 28, 2020. Flo and I would like to thank Frank Caputo for this opportunity to be here to give our testimony on the tragic murder of our daughter. IPV has affected us in the worst possible way. This is a picture of our daughter Darian Henderson-Bellman three weeks before she died. Darian was 25 years old and still living at home with us. Her murder was so preventable, if the catch-and-release portion of Bill C-75 didn't exist. Bill C-75 should have worked for petty crimes only, not for criminals with serious offences. It is difficult to sum up our daughter and her murder in five to 10 minutes, but we will do our best. Hopefully, any of the committee's questions will shed more light on our tragedy. The alleged murderer was out…

Status of Women

Summary

Witnesses · 3

Bills mentioned